"دليل كرمانشاه." [ظ‎‎١‎٤‎٨] (٥٠٤/٣٠١)

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On entering Turkish territory at Khanekin pilgrims are subject to a
further quarantine tax of 10 pias. gold.
The effect of these pilgrimages is to raise the price of necessaries of life,
for a certain time of the year, in the Turkish towns of pilgrimage. It is
estimated that on an average a pilgrim spending 60 days in lurkey spends
■about 200 krans during that period.
* Apart from this, numerous caravanserais, to which are usually attached
large endowments for upkeep, have been and are being built by pious Persian
Shiahs, and donations of cash and jewels are of frequent occurrence.
For corpses, the charge made by the Turkish authorities in Rermanshah
c r g is 35 krans, of which 27i krans or 50 pias. gold are
passed to Government account, the rest being kept for
expenses.
At Khanikin there is a further tax of T. The expenses for taking a
body to Kerbela vary from 35 to 60 tomans and upwards.
The charges for burial ground are also very high.
“ There are but few towns in Persia which show to-day so flourishing a
Commerical importance condition, from a trade point of view, as Kermansbah,
of Kermanshalu an d this in spite of oppression by the local Governor,
and badness and unsafety of the roads radiating from it. Kermanshah
is the port of entry for all gords entering Persia from Bogdad, coming
from England and India via the Persian Gulf and the Tigris. It is
practically the only route available for Western Persia, now that the Luristan
road can no longer be reded upon ; supplying such districts as Kurdistan,
Hamadan, Irak, and even competing seriously with the trade of the European
merchants of Isfahan. At one time a certain portion of the trade filtered
down from Tabriz, but now very little comes through that town. Such
Russian goods as naphtha, glassware and hardware, as have a s tie in the
bazaars, come via Hamadan and Resht.^ (Preece, 1899.)
“The commercial importance of Kermanshah has gradually developed
since the opening of the Suez (anal, and is due to its being the frontier
town on the trade route between Bagdad and Persia. The »reat drawback
to this as a trade route is the d<day which frequently takes place between
Busreh and Bagdad, towards the end of the summer, owing to the shal
lowness of the river.* This*year the river is much lower than usual at
this season and vessels drawing more than 3J feet of water cannot pass.
Goods are already beginning to accumulate at Busreh, and considerable
delays may be anticipated between now and the end of November.”
(D. Brown, June, 1901.)
There is no doubt that Russian trade is increasing, and when one
considers that for many necessaries of life the Russian goods are only
prevented from invading the Kermanshah market by the cost of transport
from Hamadan to Kermanshah, say 40 krans per kharvar, one will easily see
that British interests in this part of Persia require to be strongly upheld
if we wish to keep) to ourselves the markets of the north-west and central
* Although the delay at Busreh is.very annoying it is not a great drawback, for even if the
goods were to come straight through without any delay the only result would be that merchants
would delay before ordering goods so as not to overflow the market of Kermanshah
Camels from Arabia cannot travel in winter on account of the mud and slippery ground.
Sugar is only imported in small quantities in winter, the risk of moisture being very great